Madam Qin, her eyes brimming with tears, looked at Qi Mingzhu. "You're trying to scare your mother to death! Your mother has only you, her daughter. If anything were to happen to you, how could your mother go on living? You were perfectly fine, perfectly fine..."
Madam Qin choked back her sobs, unable to speak.
Qi Mingzhu, lying in bed, saw Madam Qin and instinctively tried to sit up.
Qi Zhenzhen quickly held her down. "You shouldn't move around carelessly right now. Just talk while lying down."
"Yes, yes, talk while lying down, don't get up," Madam Qin urged. "Zhenzhen, you sent word back that you were injured. How could you be injured when you were perfectly fine? Where is Fusu? Isn't Fusu always very careful in taking care of you?"
"Fusu went to help the imperial physician boil medicine. This has nothing to do with Fusu," Qi Mingzhu said. "It was an unexpected event, something no one could have foreseen."
Madam Qin, relentless in her questioning, found that Qi Mingzhu couldn't and wouldn't hide anything. She could only honestly recount the matter of Lu Jingning.
Madam Qin bristled. "They're bullying people, and they're not even trying to hide it! What did you ever do to her? They agreed back then that if you had a child, she would raise it. That was a huge concession! And she's still not satisfied? She's the one who made mistakes and received punishment, so why is she taking her anger out on you? Does she think she can just disregard our Changping Marquis Manor because she's a young lady of the Lu family? Marquis, you heard that. This has nothing to do with our Mingzhu. Our Mingzhu has suffered a baseless disaster. Tell me, how will you support her?"
Qi Tianming frowned. This Lu Jingning was indeed going too far!
"For now, let's see how Mother-in-law and Sister-in-law handle it," Qi Tianming said.
"Yes, yes, Zhenzhen, you stay with your elder sister for now. Your father and I need to go and see," Madam Qin said.
Qi Zhenzhen nodded in agreement. Madam Qin pulled Qi Tianming, and they hurried away.
"My mother's temperament has changed a lot now," Qi Mingzhu said, watching Madam Qin's hurried departure, her tone filled with emotion.
"Do you think she was better before, or is she better now?" Qi Zhenzhen asked.
Qi Mingzhu hesitated. "I prefer the current her. She's more unrestrained, more carefree, and more genuine."
"People never remain unchanged. After experiencing certain things and having profound feelings, they naturally change," Qi Zhenzhen said.
Qi Mingzhu strongly agreed. "I never imagined I could speak with you so calmly. Back then, I thought that as the legitimate daughter, I should be high and mighty, and as for you and Xuanxuan, you should be cautious and respectful in front of me. Everything of mine should be better than yours. But then..."
Qi Mingzhu smiled self-mockingly. "In the end, it turned out that I and who I thought you were have switched places."
She paused, then continued, "This way is also quite good, really."
Qi Zhenzhen didn't know how to respond for a moment and could only smile with pursed lips.
"I've thought about it carefully. Cousin likes me. As long as I behave myself and don't cause trouble, this affection will be enough to support me until my child grows up. When he no longer likes me, I'll rely on our child to live. As for Uncle and Aunt, as long as I don't cause trouble, out of consideration for Grandmother and my mother, they won't treat me too badly. Moreover, I still have the Marquis Manor as my backing," Qi Mingzhu said earnestly. "If I'm lucky, Cousin's feelings for me will remain from beginning to end, and then there will be nothing to complain about."
"You are pregnant now. No matter what you think, you must think in a positive direction," Qi Zhenzhen said. "And life is often like this: the more you wish for good, the better it becomes. The more pessimistic you are, the more chaotic life might become."